NORMAN, Okla. (KFOR) – As technology advances, the University of Oklahoma is working with the U.S. Department of Transportation to make roads and bridges safer after natural disasters like storms and flooding. Research on campus will have an impact across the country.
“We're one of the states that has a lot of infrastructure and bridges, so we have similar needs to other parts of the country when it comes to this,” said Dr. Rocky Chan, OU professor of electrical and computer engineering. I did.
This is a new ground-penetrating radar developed by researchers at the OU Radar Innovations Lab. The device is attached to a drone and acts like a flying radar, scanning surfaces to identify problems under roads and bridges.
For example, if a flood damages a road or bridge, inspection can detect surface damage. However, this new radar technology can see damage that is invisible to the human eye.
“This analysis helps us characterize whether it's rebar or cracks or something like that. But the drone insight tells us there's something there. Actually Post-processing will be required to determine what is in there,” said Keegan Reynolds, an electrical engineering student at OU.
The ability to fly radar makes surveying roads and bridges easier, faster and in less time.
“We have a lot of infrastructure in this country, including bridges, sidewalks, and roads that need to be regularly monitored and inspected for defects. Currently, this is time-consuming and labor-intensive. We hope it will be useful and allow us to improve accuracy without adding too many people,” said Zhang.
The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the school $15 million in funding for the project in hopes of saving lives and improving safety on roads and bridges across the country.
“As we continue to experience extreme weather events here in Oklahoma and across the country, we are excited to see our region's experts lead the way in how other regions can learn, especially when it comes to climate change and our travel patterns. We still have to work. We still have to go to the hospital. And the leadership here at the university will be something that other universities across the country can follow.” said Robert Hampshire, assistant secretary for research and technology.
Developers say the device is still in its early stages and has not yet been released. They also hope to have other improvements on their radar as they continue work on the project.
